Location May Be Ticket To Success On Park

AROUND THE TOWN - WINTER PARK PROFILES

WINTER PARK — Everyone agrees Park Avenue is changing. Many stores run by local owners are giving way to national chains that can afford the skyrocketing rent the prestigious location commands.

But do different sections of the avenue have their own distinct ''personalities''?

At least one veteran merchant on the avenue thinks so. Malcolm Reeves' family has owned Ferris-Reeves Galleries, which sells paintings and what he calls ''fine antiques,'' for 30 years - most of that time at 214 N. Park Ave.

''This is a very tricky area for merchants. It's not enough just to be on Park Avenue. You have to be in the right part of Park Avenue to capture the market you're looking for,'' Reeves said. ''There are a lot of people who will only shop one area.''

He breaks the commercial section of Park Avenue into five categories:

- Starting from the north, the street is dominated above Canton Avenue by Brandywine Square, which has been marked by significant turnover of businesses over the past few years and still has several vacancies.

Merchants there say pedestrians often do not cross Canton Avenue because they see the large St. Margaret Mary Catholic Church and school on the right side of Park Avenue and figure not enough shops are on the left side to make the walk worthwhile.

- Between Canton and Morse Boulevard is what used to be called the Gold Coast, said Reeves, whose shop is moving from there to 140 E. Morse Blvd. in July. Still commanding the highest rents, these three blocks are dominated by expensive women's apparel shops and the large Jacobson's department store.

- South of Morse to the end of Central Park at New England Avenue, he said, is a section that draws a younger crowd of shoppers with more clothing stores and restaurants such as Sbarro Italian Eatery.

One reason younger shoppers prefer the southern end is the proximity of Rollins College, said Gordon Blitch, president of the Park Avenue Merchants Association.

- Between New England and Lyman avenues is a block with more diversity. Park Books and the Marketessen have loyal followings of customers, while newer tenants, such as the Colony and No Name Bar and Grille give that section a more modern flavor, the gallery owner said.

- It is a brave merchant who sets up shop on Park Avenue south of city hall, Reeves said. There are no shops for an entire block south of Lyman and even the old, hulking Florida Power Corp. building on the next block dissuades many would-be browsers, merchants there acknowledge.

The primary draw there, he said, is Down East/Orvis, which sells hunting and fishing equipment and related clothing and accessories. Salesman David Hendrick said the store relies on the reputation of the Orvis line of goods to draw customers.

''I've seen people do a U-turn at Lyman because they look past city hall and all they can see is the Florida Power building and maybe the cleaners,'' Hendrick said. ''They just walk right back up the sidewalk on the other side of the street.''

Lower rents there help compensate for the slower pedestrian traffic, said Bob Jocham, owner of the Kennedy Studios gallery. He hopes that redevelopment of the Florida Power site and of the now-vacant lot across from city hall will encourage future shoppers to keep walking south on the avenue.

Other downtown observers, however, do not agree with Reeves' sharp distinction among sections of the avenue.

Mike Knaebel, vice president of the merchants association, acknowledged that the avenue's character is changing with the exodus of many ''mom and pop'' stores, but he did not see a significant difference between the ''personalities'' of different blocks of the avenue.

Jacobson's general manager Gary Brewer also said there is no appreciable distinction among most of the sections Reeves described. Brewer, also a city commissioner, said the entire seven-block strip between Canton and Comstock avenues is the avenue's prime retail shopping area.

He agreed, though, that the fringe areas - north of Canton and south of Comstock - were a bit off the beaten path for most shoppers.

Tracy Jennings, manager of Becca Boutique at Brandywine Square north of Canton, said she must build up a clientele of repeat customers to stay in business. The store, which sells what she calls ''wearable art,'' has been there only since November.

As do others, Brewer worries that Park Avenue is losing its ''quaint personality'' as owner-managed stores are replaced by homogenized chains and franchises. But because of high rents, he said, merchants almost must be professional retailers to make money on the avenue.

Winter Park sculptor John Dishman, sitting with friends at Brandywine Square this week, said the avenue is becoming more like a mall - indistinguishable from any other in the country. He wishes all the chain stores would go away - lumping Brewer's Jacobson's outlet into that category.

''It may lose some of its hometown flavor, but Park Avenue will always be the premier retail area of Central Florida,'' Brewer said.